The green fairy is back — welcome to the absinthe renaissance

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I hope my parents aren’t reading this, but I used to get deeply trolleyed on absinthe during my year abroad in Spain.

My friends and I would basically take over a bar called ‘La Chupiteria’, dedicated to shots, and order a round of ‘absentas’ to kick off the evening. Our ritual involved shooting a shot of the green fairy, white-knuckling the bar, placing our heads between our knees in the brace position until we’d recovered. Then, doing it all over again.

But, enough about my wayward youth. I’ve grown up since then and now have an entirely new and mature relationship with absinthe, after many years of estrangement. Just in time for the renaissance of the drink, might I add.

Back in the day, and by that I mean mid-19^th century Belle Epoque, absinthe was the spirit of choice amongst Bohemian Paris, from Baudelaire, Oscar Wilde to Toulouse Lautrec. Hemmingway drank it with Champagne – a cocktail known as Death in the Afternoon – while Vincent cut off his ear while he was on the stuff. So you can see why it was banned in France for the last 100 years.

What is absinthe?

It’s a green-hued spirit created in Switzerland in 1700, made from grand wormwood, anise, fennel and a bunch of other, undisclosed herbs. Like so many of these lethally strong, but delicious ‘drinktures’, they started out as medicinal elixirs to cure stomach ailments. Similar story for Chartreuse.

Absinthe’s popularity grew in Paris to the point where 5pm was called ‘l’heur verte’, which means ‘the green hour’. Just as quickly, it faced the wrath of cancel culture from a ‘moral panic’ at the end of the century France, blamed for the ‘social ills’ of the country and banned there until 2011. Not only there, but Switzerland, France, Belgium, Netherlands and the United States.

Why was it banished though? Because wormwood contains a neurotoxin called thujone, but then, so does sage. In excess, thujone has been linked to fits, hallucinations and psychosis, and this is what was fixated on. The powers that be separated it from alcoholism, giving it the name ‘absinthism’, even linking it to notoriously gruesome crimes.

Nowadays, the hallucinogenic effects of grand wormwood, aka artemisia absinthium, are thought to have been overstated. It’s basically impossible on the allowed minute dosage of 35 parts per million. Sure, in the past people used to go doolally on the green stuff, but that is now thought to have more to do with its incredibly high alcohol content. We’re talking, teetering on the brink of 74% abv in some bottles. You would die of alcohol poisoning many times over before succumbing to thujone toxicity.

On a lighter note, absinthe has found its mojo again, featured as the headliner on cocktail lists, bringing an element of danger with it wherever it goes. The new absinthe menu at Hotel Café Royal takes authenticity to an almost immersive experience level, Belle Epoque glass urn, sugar lumps and all. Then there’s the Absinthe Parlour in East London and Blondies in Clapton selling ‘absinthe slushies’.

Producers are experimenting with barrel-aged version and even Crème d’Absinthe which is more like a liqueur, is less formidable and has the potential to draw new drinkers into the category.

Then, there’s green, herbal tinctures like Chartreuse and Crème de Menthe that are gathering momentum and guaranteed to give you the green light to experiment with your cocktails at home.

And here are some ways to do just that…

Absinthe on the rocks

Devil’s Botany Absinthe Regalis, £54.95, devilsbotany.com

This is the first absinthe distillery in the UK, and it’s in East London, obvs. The founders haven’t just revived absinthe (reference to the Corpse Reviver cocktail, see what I did there?), they’ve reimagined it. This is the grande dame of absinthes, made with the infamous trinity of grand wormwood, green anise and fennel seed, along with host of botanicals found growing wild across Britain. The anise notes are offset by earthy coriander seed, fresh dill, caraway seed and lemon thyme notes. Delicious, and the best bit, it ‘louches’ (becomes cloudy) on contact with water.

Sip an ‘Absentini’

Devil’s Botany London Absinthe, £38, threshers.co.uk

They’ve made this in the style of a London Dry gin, plus, they also make a London dry gin. Produced specifically for cocktails, this clean, colourless absinthe cleverly doesn’t cloud on contact with other liquids. The anise profile is super subtle here, in fact you get more of a blossomy noseful thanks to locally-grown meadowsweet and elderflower. Try it instead of gin or vodka, with dry vermouth in an Absentini.

Serve it neat

Devil’s Botany Chocolate Absinthe Liqueur, £27.25, thewhiskyexchange.com

I have to tell you that this is delicious. We all know that mint and chocolate go together as flavour profiles, but so too does aniseed and chocolate. They blend the finest cacao with their absinthe distillate, giving seriously moreish mint chocolate flavours with hints of liquorice. You could even try this in an Espresso Martini for ultra decadence.

Make a very boozy hot chocolate

Chartreuse Green Liqueur, £59.95, masterofmalt.com

This iconic/notorious drink has been flavoured with extracts of 132 plants, so its almost part of your five-a-day. Famously produced by Carthusian monks, with only two brothers at a time privy to the recipe. The chlorophyll in the plants gives it its Grinch-coloured hue, and it’s so deeply herbaceous as to taste medicinal. If you’ve ever been skiing, you’ll know that it’s a staple in hot chocolates slope-side for a reason (it’s 55% alcohol).

Enjoy a Mint Choc Chip Martini

Tempus Fugit Crème de Menthe Glaciale, £32.95, thewhiskyexchange.com

Hands up, who associates Crème de Menthe with the sticky green bottle at the back of you parents’ drinks cupboard? So, more power to Tempus Fugit spirits for de-naffing said liqueur, and doing so as authentically as they could. Having cross-referenced manuals in three languages, they found out that it’s a complex spirit that can’t be made just from mint. Pour 50ml Baileys, 15ml Crème de Menthe, 75ml half half (milk/cream) into a shaker with ice, shake and pour into a coupe glass, garnish with fresh mint with mint-chocolate grated over it. Voila, the Mint Chocolate Chip Martini.

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